Hanger for mounting multiple cables

ABSTRACT

A cable hanger for securing cables to a supporting structure includes: a base panel having opposed ends; a pair of arms attached to a respective end of the base panel and having a free end; a pair of locking projections, each of the locking projections attached to a respective free end of the arms; a pair of gripping members, each gripping member attached with a respective arm or to the base panel, wherein the arms and locking projections are spread apart to enable insertion of a first cable between the arms, wherein the gripping members engage and grip the first cable, and wherein the locking projections are inserted into the aperture of the supporting structure; and at least one finger attached to and extending from one of the arms or the base panel, the finger configured to deflect and grasp a second cable against the arm or base panel.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application claims priority from and the benefit of U.S.Provisional Patent Application Nos. 62/427,975, filed Nov. 30, 2016, and62/447,947, filed Jan. 19, 2017, the disclosures of which are herebyincorporated herein in their entireties.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to devices for supporting cablesand, in particular, to hangers for securing cables to supportstructures.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Cable hangers are commonly used to secure cables to structural membersof antenna towers and or along tunnel walls. Generally, each cable isattached to a structural member by cable hangers mounted atperiodically-spaced attachment points.

Antenna towers and or tunnels may be crowded due to the large numbers ofcables required for signal-carrying. Over time, as systems are added,upgraded and/or expanded, installation of additional cables may berequired. To conserve space, it may be desirable for each set of cablehangers to secure more than a single cable. Certain cable hangers havebeen constructed to secure multiple cables; other cable hangers have astackable construction that permits multiple cable hangers to beinterlocked extending outwardly from each mounting point/structuralmember. Stacked and multiple-cable-type cable hangers significantlyincrease the number of cables mountable to a single attachment point.

One popular stackable cable hanger is discussed in U.S. Pat. No.8,191,836 to Korczak, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporatedherein by reference in its entirety. One such cable hanger, designatedbroadly at 10, is shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. The hanger 10 includes curvedarms 5 that extend from a flat base 6. Locking projections 7 extend fromthe free ends of the arms 5. As can be seen in FIGS. 1 and 2, thelocking projections 7 are inserted into a reinforced hole 8 in a towerstructure 4 to mount the hanger 10 thereon. The base 6 of the hanger 10includes a reinforced hole 9 that can receive the projections of anotherhanger 10 to mount a second cable.

As can be best seen in FIG. 2, the arms 5 include arcuate sections 14that together generally define a circle within which a cable can reside.Two cantilevered tabs 12 extend radially inwardly and toward the base 6at one end of the arcuate sections 14, and two cantilevered tabs 16extend radially inwardly and toward the base 6 from the opposite ends ofthe arcuate sections 14. The cantilevered tabs 12, 16 are deployed todeflect radially outwardly when the hanger 10 receives a cable formounting; this deflection generates a radially inward force from eachtab 12, 16 that grips the jacket of the cable.

Hangers can be “stacked” onto each other by inserting the lockingprojections 7 of one hanger into the large hole 9 of the next hanger.One variety of cable hanger of this type is the SNAP-STAK® hanger,available from CommScope, Inc. (Joliet, Ill.).

The SNAP-STAK® hanger is offered in multiple sizes that correspond tothe outer diameters of different cables. This arrangement has beensuitable for use with RF coaxial cables, which tend to be manufacturedin only a few different outer diameters; however, the arrangement hasbeen less desirable for fiber optic cables, which tend to bemanufactured in a much greater variety of diameters. Moreover, fiberoptic cables tend to be much heavier than coaxial cables (sometimes asmuch as three times heavier per unit foot), which induces greater loadand stress on the hangers.

Multiple approaches to addressing this issue are offered in co-assignedand co-pending U.S. Patent Publication No. 2016/0281881 to Vaccaro, thedisclosure of which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in full.One cable hanger discussed in this publication is shown in FIGS. 3 and 4and designated broadly at 610 therein. The cable hanger 610 is somewhatsimilar to the cable hanger 10, inasmuch as it has a base 606, curvedarms 605 and locking projections 607 that resemble those of the hanger10 discussed above. However, the cable hanger 610 also has flex members618 that define chords across the arcuate sections 614 of the arms 605.As can be seen in FIG. 4, cantilevered gripping members 612, 616 extendfrom the flex members 618 and into the cable-gripping space S within thearms 605. It can also be seen in FIG. 3 that the flex members 618 aretripartite, with two vertically offset horizontal runs 618 a, 618 cmerging with the arcuate sections 614 of the arms 605 and a vertical run618 b extending between the horizontal runs 618 a, 618 c. The grippingmembers 612, 616 extend from opposite sides of the vertical run 618 band are vertically offset from each other.

In use, the cable hanger 610 is employed in the same manner as the cablehanger 10; a cable is inserted into the space S between the arms 605,which are then closed around the cable as the locking projections 607are inserted into a mounting hole. The cantilevered gripping members612, 616 can help to grip and to center the cable within the space S.The presence of the flex members 618, which are fixed end beams ratherthan cantilevered tabs, can provide additional gripping force beyondthat of the cable hanger 10.

In view of the foregoing, it may be desirable to provide additionalconfigurations of cable hangers to enable a technician to adapt todifferent cable sizes and mounting conditions.

SUMMARY

As a first aspect, embodiments of the invention are directed to a cablehanger for securing one or more cables to a supporting structure havingan aperture. The cable hanger comprises: a base panel having opposedends; a pair of arms, each of the arms attached to a respective end ofthe base panel and having a free end; a pair of locking projections,each of the locking projections attached to a respective free end of thearms; and a pair of gripping members, each gripping member attached witha respective arm or to the base panel. The arms and locking projectionsare configured to spread apart to enable insertion of a first cablebetween the arms, wherein the gripping members engage and grip the firstcable, and wherein the locking projections are configured to be insertedinto the aperture of the supporting structure. The cable hanger furthercomprises at least one finger attached to and extending from one of thearms or the base panel, the finger configured to deflect and grasp asecond cable against the arm or base panel.

As a second aspect, embodiments of the invention are directed to a cablehanger for securing one or more cables to a supporting structure havingan aperture, the cable hanger comprising: a base panel having opposedends; a pair of arms, each of the arms attached to a respective end ofthe base panel and having a free end, the base panel and the armsdefining a perimeter of the cable hanger; a pair of locking projections,each of the locking projections attached to a respective free end of thearms; and a pair of gripping members, each gripping member attached witha respective arm or to the base panel. The arms and locking projectionsare configured to spread apart to enable insertion of a first cablebetween the arms, wherein the gripping members engage and grip the firstcable, and wherein the locking projections are configured to be insertedinto the aperture of the supporting structure. The cable hanger furthercomprises a plurality of fingers attached to and extending from one ofthe arms or the base panel, the fingers configured to deflect and graspa plurality of second cables against the arm or base panel. The base andarms define a perimeter of the cable hanger, and wherein the fingers aremounted and configured so that the second cables grasped by the fingersare located outside the perimeter of the cable hanger.

As a third aspect, embodiments of the invention are directed to a cablehanger for securing one or more cables to a supporting structure havingan aperture. The cable hanger comprises: a base having opposed ends; apair of arms, each of the arms attached to a respective end of the baseand having a free end; a pair of locking projections, each of thelocking projections attached to a respective free end of the arms; and aplurality of pairs of gripping members, each of the pairs of grippingmembers extending from one of the arms. The locking projections areconfigured to be inserted into the aperture of the supporting structure.Each of the pairs of gripping members is configured to engage and grip arespective cable.

As a fourth aspect, embodiments of the invention are directed to a cablehanger for securing one or more cables to a supporting structure havingan aperture, wherein the cable hanger comprises: a base having opposedends; a pair of arms, each of the arms attached to a respective end ofthe base and having a free end; a pair of locking projections, each ofthe locking projections attached to a respective free end of the arms; afirst pair of gripping members extending from a first one of the arms;and a second pair of gripping members extending from a second one of thearms. Each of the pairs of gripping members is configured to engage andgrip a respective cable.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a prior art cable hanger.

FIG. 2 is a top view of the prior art cable hanger of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of another prior art cable hanger.

FIG. 4 is a top view of the cable hanger of FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is a top view of a cable hanger capable of mounting multiplecables according to embodiments of the invention.

FIG. 6 is a side view of the cable hanger of FIG. 5.

FIG. 7 is a top view of multiple cables mounted in the cable hanger ofFIG. 5.

FIG. 8 is a top view of a cable hanger capable of mounting multiplecables according to further embodiments of the invention.

FIG. 9 is an enlarged side view of two pairs of gripping fingers of thecable hanger of FIG. 8 prior to being bent into the clip configurationshown therein.

FIGS. 10A and 10B are top views of a pair of gripping fingers of thecable hanger of FIG. 8 receiving a cable for mounting.

FIG. 11 is a side view of a pair of gripping fingers for a cable hangeraccording to alternative embodiments of the invention.

FIG. 12 is a top view of a cable hanger capable of mounting multiplecables according to alternative embodiments of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present invention is described with reference to the accompanyingdrawings, in which certain embodiments of the invention are shown. Thisinvention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and shouldnot be construed as limited to the embodiments that are pictured anddescribed herein; rather, these embodiments are provided so that thisdisclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey thescope of the invention to those skilled in the art. It will also beappreciated that the embodiments disclosed herein can be combined in anyway and/or combination to provide many additional embodiments.

Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms that areused in this disclosure have the same meaning as commonly understood byone of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. Theterminology used in the below description is for the purpose ofdescribing particular embodiments only and is not intended to belimiting of the invention. As used in this disclosure, the singularforms “a”, “an” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms aswell, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will also beunderstood that when an element (e.g., a device, circuit, etc.) isreferred to as being “attached”, “connected” or “coupled” to anotherelement, it can be directly connected or coupled to the other element orintervening elements may be present. In contrast, when an element isreferred to as being “directly attached”, “directly connected” or“directly coupled” to another element, there are no intervening elementspresent.

Referring now to the drawings, a cable hanger according to embodimentsof the invention, designated broadly at 110, is shown in FIGS. 5-7. Thecable hanger 110 is similar to the hanger 610 described above andincludes a base 106, curved arms 105, locking projections 107, flexmembers 118 that define chords across the arcuate sections 114 of thearms 105, and cantilevered gripping members 112, 116 that extend fromthe flex members 118 and into the cable-gripping space S within the arms105. However, the cable hanger 110 also includes four additional pairsof gripping fingers 130, 132, 134, 136 that are configured to providegripping locations for additional cables. These are discussed in greaterdetail below.

As seen in FIG. 6, each pair of gripping fingers 130, 132, 134, 136 ispositioned with one finger of the pair above the other finger of thepair (see fingers 130 a, 130 b, which make up pair 130, and fingers 132a, 132 b, which make up pair 132, in FIG. 6). It can also be seen thateach of the fingers 130 a, 130 b, 132 a, 132 b is adjacent a window 131a, 131 b, 133 a, 133 b; in some embodiments, the fingers are bent from ametallic sheet, with the windows 131 a, 131 b, 133 a, 133 b representingthe location on the sheet from which the fingers were bent. The fingers130, 134 originate from locations on the arms 105 near the base 106,where they confront concave regions 105 a of the arms 105. The fingers132, 136 originate from locations on the arms 105 near the fixed ends ofthe flex members 118, where they confront concave regions 105 b in thearms 105. The fingers 130, 132, 134, 136 are illustrated as beingslightly arcuate, but may be of any appropriate shape.

As can be seen in FIG. 7, the presence of the fingers 130, 132, 134, 136in the cable hanger 110 enables up to four additional cables 152, 154,156, 158 to be mounted on the cable hanger 110 beyond the cable 150 thatis grasped by the cantilevered gripping members 112, 116. Each of thefingers 130, 132, 134, 136 can deflect away from the arm 105 to receivea respective cable, then recover toward its resting position to graspthe cable. Notably, the fingers 130, 132, 134, 136 force theirrespective cables 152, 154, 156, 158 into the adjacent concave regions105 a, 105 of the arms 105.

In contrast to the cables mounted in prior cable hangers of this type,the additional cables 152, 154, 156, 158 are mounted outside or externalto the perimeter of the hanger (i.e., outside of a perimeter defined bythe base 106 and the arms 105). (As used herein, a mounting location is“internal” when it is located within the periphery of the cable hanger110, and is “external” when it is located outside the periphery of thecable hanger 110). Also, these additional cables 152, 154, 156, 158 canbe inserted into the fingers 130, 132, 134, 136 either before the cablehanger 110 and cable 150 are mounted to a mounting structure, or aftersuch mounting occurs.

The ability of cable hanger 110 to receive and grasp additional cablescan provide cost savings, as one hanger is needed where as many as fivewere necessary before. Additionally, lower wind loading can result, asmultiple cables are held close to the tower (or other mountingstructure), thus reducing any bending moment on the hanger that mayresult. The reduced wind loading may be particularly helpful if multiplehangers are stacked atop each other; for example, the mounting oftencables with two stacked hangers would create far less wind load than thesame ten cables mounted with ten stacked hangers.

In the illustrated embodiment, the fingers 130, 132, 134, 136 are sizedto receive cables 152, 154, 156, 158 that are somewhat smaller than thecable 150 received by the gripping members 112, 116. This arrangementmay be suitable for environments atop an antenna tower, where a thickertrunk cable (such as cable 150) is mounted adjacent a plurality ofthinner jumper cables (such as cables 152, 154, 156, 158). As anexample, a 1.5 inch trunk cable may be mounted in the gripping members112, 116, and 0.6 inch jumper cables may be mounted in the fingers 130,132, 134, 136.

Those skilled in this art will appreciate that other variations of thecable hanger 110 may also be suitable. For example, the number, size andlocations of the fingers 130, 132, 134, 136 may vary: more or fewerfingers may be included; the fingers may be larger or smaller, or mayvary in size within the same hanger; and the fingers may be mounted todifferent locations on the arms, to the base, adjacent the lockingprojections, or even within the perimeter of the hanger (e.g., near thebase or the gripping members). Other variations are also contemplated.

It will also be appreciated that the base panel, arms, lockingprojections, flex members, and/or gripping members for the cable 150 mayvary. For example, the flex members may lack gripping tabs, with theflex members themselves serving to engage the cable 150. Alternatively,the flex members may be mounted on the arms in a cantilevered manner,and configured either to freely deflect or to deflect in a limitedmanner until supported by a portion of the arm or another structure. Thearms 106 are illustrated as being arcuate, but may instead include oneor more straight sections. These and other variations are discussed inU.S. Patent Publication No. 2016/0281881 to Vaccaro, supra, which isincorporated by reference above.

Also, the fingers and/or gripping tabs may include features (includingridges, edges, barbs, and the like) that enhance gripping of a cable,facilitate insertion of a cable, or both. Examples of such features aredescribed in co-assigned and co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No.15/335,614, filed Oct. 27, 2016, the disclosure of which is herebyincorporated herein in its entirety.

Those skilled in this art will appreciate that the cable hangersdiscussed above are typically formed of a metallic material, such assteel, and may be formed as a unitary member (often from a flat blankstamped from sheet steel and bent into a desired shape).

Also, as discussed above, the cable hanger 110 can be arranged in a“stacked” relationship by inserting the locking projections of one cablehanger into the mounting hole in the base of a second cable hanger inthe manner described above with respect to cable hanger 10. The secondcable hanger may be identical to or different from the first cablehanger as needed for hanging the cable in question.

Referring now to the drawings, a cable hanger 210 according toembodiments of the invention is shown in FIG. 8. The cable hanger 210 issimilar in configuration to the cable hanger 10 above and has a base 206with a mounting hole 209, curved arms 205 with arcuate portions 214 andlocking segments 208, and locking projections 207 extending from thelocking segments 208. However, rather than having gripping tabsconfigured to grip a single cable like those of the cable hanger 10, thecable hanger 210 includes four additional pairs of gripping fingers 230,232, 234, 336 that are configured to provide gripping locations foradditional cables. These are discussed in greater detail below.

As can be seen in FIG. 8, the pair of gripping fingers 230 extends fromone end of the arcuate portion 214 of one of the arms 205 relativelynear the base 206, with another pair of gripping fingers 232 extendingfrom the opposite end of the arcuate portion 214 near the correspondinglocking segment 208. The gripping fingers 234 extend from the “base” endof the arcuate portion 214 of the other arm 205, and the grippingfingers 236 extend from the “locking segment” end of the arcuate portion214 of the other arm 205. The gripping fingers 230, 232, 234, 236provide internal mounting locations for the cable hanger 210. (As noteabove, as used herein, a mounting location is “internal” when it islocated within the periphery of the cable hanger 210, and is “external”when it is located outside the periphery of the cable hanger 210).

As seen in FIG. 9, each pair of gripping fingers 230, 232, 234, 236 ispositioned with one finger of the pair being vertically offset above theother finger of the pair (see fingers 230 a, 230 b, which make up pair230, and fingers 232 a, 232 b, which make up pair 232, in FIG. 9). Itcan also be seen that each of the fingers 230 a, 230 b, 232 a, 232 b isadjacent a window 231 a, 231 b, 233 a, 233 b; in some embodiments, thefingers are bent from a metallic sheet, with the windows 231 a, 231 b,233 a, 233 b representing the location on the sheet from which thefingers are bent. (FIG. 9 illustrates the fingers 230 a, 230 b, 232 a,232 b prior to being bent.)

A cable may be mounted between any of the pairs of gripping fingers(FIGS. 10A and 10B show a cable 250 mounted in fingers 230). Thus, thesingle cable hanger 210 can mount as many as four cables in the grippingfingers 230, 232, 234, 236. Typically, cables 250 will be sized between4 and 17 mm in diameter, although the fingers 230, 232, 234, 236 may beconfigured to receive cables of any suitable size.

Once cables 250 are mounted in the fingers 230, 232, 234, 236, the cablehanger 210 can be mounted to a mounting structure via the lockingprojections 207 being deflected toward each other from a relaxed stateand being inserted into a hole (typically ¾ inch) in a mountingstructure in the deflected condition. The locking segments 208 exertoutward pressure on edges of the hole, and the locking projections 207maintain the cable hanger 210 in a mounted position on the mountingstructure.

The gripping fingers 230, 232, 234, 236 are illustrated as beingcurvilinear, with their free end portions nearer than their fixed ends(thereby forming an open-ended “clip”) but may be of any appropriateshape for mounting cable. For example, as can be seen in FIG. 11, a pairof fingers 230′ may also be configured such that their free ends overlapeach other, with the result that the fingers 230′ tend to press a cable250′ against the arm 205′ rather than tending to compress the cablebetween the fingers in the fashion of a clip.

Those skilled in this art will appreciate that other variations of thecable hanger 210 may also be suitable. For example, the number, size andlocations of the pairs of fingers 230, 232, 234, 236 may vary: more orfewer fingers may be included; the fingers may be larger or smaller, ormay vary in size within the same hanger; and the fingers may be mountedto different locations on the arms, to the base, or adjacent the lockingprojections. The pairs of gripping fingers may be mounted to one or bothof the arms 205. Other variations are also contemplated.

It will also be appreciated that the base panel 206, arms 205, andlocking projections 207 for the cable hanger 210 may vary. For example,the arms 205 are illustrated as being arcuate, but may instead includeone or more straight sections. The locking segments 208 of the arms 205may be straight, curved, or a combination of both. These and othervariations are discussed in U.S. Patent Publication No. 2016/0281881 toVaccaro, supra, which is incorporated by reference above.

Also, the gripping fingers 230, 232, 234, 236 may include features(including ridges, edges, lances, barbs, nubs, dimples and the like)that enhance gripping of a cable, facilitate insertion of a cable, orboth. Examples of such features are described in co-assigned andco-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/335,614, filed Oct. 27,2016, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated herein in itsentirety.

Those skilled in this art will appreciate that the cable hangers 210discussed above are typically formed of a metallic material, such assteel, and may be formed as a monolithic member (often from a flat blankstamped from sheet steel and bent into a desired shape).

Also, as discussed above, the cable hanger 210 can be arranged in a“stacked” relationship by inserting the locking projections of one cablehanger 210 into the mounting hole 209 in the base 206 of a second cablehanger 210 in the manner described above with respect to cable hanger10. The second cable hanger may be identical to or different from thefirst cable hanger as needed for hanging the cable(s) in question.

Referring now to FIG. 12, another cable hanger, designated broadly at310, is shown therein. The cable hanger 310 has a base 306, arms 305,locking segments 308 and locking projections 307. However, the arms 305are relatively straight, such that relatively little space existsbetween the arms 305. Pairs of gripping fingers 330, 332 extendlaterally from one of the arms 305, and pairs of gripping fingers 334,336 extend laterally in the opposite direction from the other of thearms 305. Thus, the single cable hanger 305 can provide four mountinglocations for cables, each of which is external to the periphery of thecable hanger 305.

Like the cable hanger 210, the cable hanger 310 can be mounted on amounting structure by inserting the locking projections through amounting hole (typically nominally % inch in size). The base 306includes a hole 309 that can accept the locking projections of anothercable hanger, which may be of the same configuration or may differ.

The foregoing is illustrative of the present invention and is not to beconstrued as limiting thereof. Although exemplary embodiments of thisinvention have been described, those skilled in the art will readilyappreciate that many modifications are possible in the exemplaryembodiments without materially departing from the novel teachings andadvantages of this invention. Accordingly, all such modifications areintended to be included within the scope of this invention as defined inthe claims. The invention is defined by the following claims, withequivalents of the claims to be included therein.

That which is claimed is:
 1. A cable hanger for securing one or more cables to a supporting structure having an aperture, said cable hanger comprising: a base panel having opposed ends; a pair of arms, each of the arms attached to a respective end of the base panel and having a free end; a pair of locking projections, each of the locking projections attached to a respective free end of the arms; and a pair of gripping members, each gripping member attached with a respective arm or to the base panel; wherein the arms and locking projections are configured to spread apart to enable insertion of a first cable between the arms, wherein the gripping members engage and grip the first cable, and wherein the locking projections are configured to be inserted into the aperture of the supporting structure; and at least one finger attached to and extending from one of the arms or the base panel, the finger configured to deflect and grasp a second cable against the arm or base panel.
 2. The cable hanger defined in claim 1, wherein the at least one finger is a plurality of fingers.
 3. The cable hanger defined in claim 1, wherein the base and arms define a perimeter of the cable hanger, and wherein the at least one finger is mounted and configured so that a second cable grasped by the finger is located outside the perimeter of the cable hanger.
 4. The cable hanger defined in claim 1, wherein the arms and gripping members are configured to grasp a first cable of a first size, and the at least one finger is configured to grasp a second cable of a second size that is less than the first size.
 5. The cable hanger defined in claim 2, wherein the plurality of fingers comprises two fingers attached on one of the arms and two fingers attached to the other of the arms.
 6. The cable hanger defined in claim 1, wherein the at least one finger is attached to one of the arms.
 7. The cable hanger defined in claim 1, wherein each of the gripping members has a pair of opposed ends, and wherein each of the opposed ends is fixed to one of the arms.
 8. The cable hanger defined in claim 1, in combination with a first cable engaging the gripping members and a second cable engaging the at least one finger.
 9. The cable hanger defined in claim 8, wherein the first cable is of a different size than the second cable.
 10. The cable hanger defined in claim 1, wherein the finger is configured to deflect and grasp a second cable against a concave region of the arm or base panel.
 11. A cable hanger for securing one or more cables to a supporting structure having an aperture, said cable hanger comprising: a base panel having opposed ends; a pair of arms, each of the arms attached to a respective end of the base panel and having a free end, the base panel and the arms defining a perimeter of the cable hanger; a pair of locking projections, each of the locking projections attached to a respective free end of the arms; and a pair of gripping members, each gripping member attached with a respective arm or to the base panel; wherein the arms and locking projections are configured to spread apart to enable insertion of a first cable between the arms, wherein the gripping members engage and grip the first cable, and wherein the locking projections are configured to be inserted into the aperture of the supporting structure; and a plurality of fingers attached to and extending from one of the arms or the base panel, the fingers configured to deflect and grasp a plurality of second cables against the arm or base panel; wherein the base and arms define a perimeter of the cable hanger, and wherein the fingers are mounted and configured so that the second cables grasped by the fingers are located outside the perimeter of the cable hanger.
 12. The cable hanger defined in claim 11, wherein the arms and gripping members are configured to grasp a first cable of a first size, and each of the fingers is configured to grasp a second cable of a second size that is less than the first size.
 13. The cable hanger defined in claim 11, wherein the plurality of fingers comprises two fingers attached on one of the arms and two fingers attached to the other of the arms.
 14. The cable hanger defined in claim 11, wherein the plurality of fingers are attached to the arms.
 15. The cable hanger defined in claim 11, wherein each of the gripping members has a pair of opposed ends, and wherein each of the opposed ends is fixed to one of the arms.
 16. The cable hanger defined in claim 11, in combination with a first cable engaging the gripping members and a second cable engaging the at least one finger.
 17. The cable hanger defined in claim 16, wherein the first cable is of a different size than the second cable.
 18. A cable hanger for securing one or more cables to a supporting structure having an aperture, said cable hanger comprising: a base having opposed ends; a pair of arms, each of the arms attached to a respective end of the base and having a free end; a pair of locking projections, each of the locking projections attached to a respective free end of the arms; and a plurality of pairs of gripping members, each of the pairs of gripping members extending from one of the arms; wherein the locking projections are configured to be inserted into the aperture of the supporting structure; and wherein each of the pairs of gripping members is configured to engage and grip a respective cable.
 19. The cable hanger defined in claim 18, wherein at least one pair of gripping members extends from a first one of the arms, and at least another of the pairs of gripping members extends from a second one of the arms.
 20. The cable hanger defined in claim 19, wherein at least two pairs of the gripping members extend from the first arm, and at least two pairs of the gripping members extend from the second arm.
 21. The cable hanger defined in claim 18, wherein the pairs of gripping members are internal gripping members that extend within the periphery of the cable hanger.
 22. The cable hanger defined in claim 18, wherein the pairs of gripping members are external gripping members that extend outside the periphery of the cable hanger.
 23. The cable hanger defined in claim 18 in combination with a first cable mounted in a first of the pairs of gripping members.
 24. The cable hanger defined in claim 23 in combination with a second cable mounted in a second of the pairs of gripping members.
 25. The cable hanger defined in claim 18, wherein one of the gripping members of a pair of gripping members is vertically offset from the other of the gripping members of the pair.
 26. The cable hanger defined in claim 18, wherein the cable hanger is formed as a monolithic component.
 27. The cable hanger defined in claim 18, wherein the cable hanger is formed from a metallic sheet.
 28. A cable hanger for securing one or more cables to a supporting structure having an aperture, said cable hanger comprising: a base having opposed ends; a pair of arms, each of the arms attached to a respective end of the base and having a free end; a pair of locking projections, each of the locking projections attached to a respective free end of the arms; and a first pair of gripping members extending from a first one of the arms; a second pair of gripping members extending from a second one of the arms; wherein each of the pairs of gripping members is configured to engage and grip a respective cable. 